Memorable Manitobans: William Fingland (1862-1946)

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William Fingland
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Architect.

Born at Rockton, Ontario on 5 August 1862, son of William and Mary Ann Fingland, he was educated at the School of Practical Science (Toronto). He came to Manitoba in 1884 but later returned east, engaging in various architectural offices in New York City from 1893 to 1905.

He came back to Winnipeg in 1905 and opened an architectural practice. He also served as President of the Manitoba Board of Examiners of Architects. During the course of his architectural career, he designed buildings in Winnipeg, Moose Jaw, Regina, Saskatoon, and Edmonton. In 1907, he was appointed consulting architect for the Legislature Building in Alberta and, in 1915, he was Acting Provincial Architect of Manitoba. He served as President of the Manitoba Association of Architects (1913).

In 1887, he married Barbara Bella Chisholm (1864-1945) and they had six sons and three daughters, including William Clarence Fingland (1888-?), Bernice Evelyn Fingland (1894-1983), John Colin Fingland, Jennie Marion Fingland (1899-?), Evan Beverley Fingland (1902-?), Louis Alexander Fingland (1904-?), Harold Arthur Fingland (1907-1986), and Ruth Isabel Fingland (1909-1993). The family lived at 120 Walnut Street (1911). He was a member of the AF & AM (Scottish Rite, 32nd degree), Knights of Tabor, and the Shriners.

He died at Winnipeg on 25 May 1946 and was buried in the Brookside Cemetery.

Some of his architectural works in Manitoba included:

Building

Location

Year

Status

Wesley Methodist Church

Carman

1906-1907

 

Crawford House (Mrs. H. R. Crawford)

Roslyn Road, Winnipeg

1907

Demolished (?)

Selkirk General Hospital

133 Manchester Avenue, Selkirk

1907

Demolished (?)

Selkirk Central School (expansion)

Eaton Avenue, Selkirk

1907-1908

Demolished (?)

Selkirk Public Library

Eaton Avenue, Selkirk

1909

Demolished (?)

Chapman House

85 West Gate, Winnipeg

1909

 

Enderton Building

334 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg

1909-1910

Demolished (1969)

Bank of Hamilton

119 Marion Street, Winnipeg

1910

 

Bank of Hamilton

72 Third Street, Roland, RM of Roland

1910

 

Codville Warehouse

Pacific Avenue, Brandon

1910

Demolished (?)

Lothian Building

154 Evanson Street, Winnipeg

1911

 

Rosedale Apartments

280 Rosedale Avenue, Winnipeg

1911

 

Glen Avon Apartments

464 Spence Street, Winnipeg

1912

 

McKittrick House

64 Middle Gate, Winnipeg

1913

 

Avenue Building (addition)

265 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg

1913

 

Lyndhurst Apartments

181 Balmoral Street, Winnipeg

1913

 

Thomson and Pope Building

285-291 Edmonton Street / 379-381 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg

1914

Demolished (1983)

Lipton Apartments

975 Lipton Street, Winnipeg

1914-1921

 

Beverley Block

719 Beverley Street, Winnipeg

1914

 

St. James Telephone Exchange Building

340 Rutland Street, Winnipeg

1915-1916

Demolished (2022)

Manitoba Government Telephones Building

19 Ninth Street, Brandon

1916-1917

 

Dauphin Telephone Exchange Building

305 Main Street North, Dauphin

1916-1917

 

Bradburn Building

410 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg

1922

 

Greater Winnipeg Water District Railway Station

598 Plinguet Street, Winnipeg

1927

 

Sources:

“Mrs. H. E. Crawford residence,” Manitoba Free Press, 20 April 1907, page 13.

Who’s Who in Western Canada: A Biographical Dictionary of Notable Living Men and Women of Western Canada, Volume 1, edited by C. W. Parker, Vancouver: Canadian Press Association, 1911.

1911 Canada census, Automated Genealogy.

The Story of Manitoba by F. H. Schofield, Winnipeg: The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1913.

“Unearth secret chamber under Normal School,” Winnipeg Tribune, 17 July 1915, page 1.

Birth and death registrations, Manitoba Vital Statistics.

“William Fingland,” Winnipeg Free Press, 28 May 1946, page 19.

Obituary [Bernice Evelyn Fingland], Winnipeg Free Press, 18 April 1983, page 46.

Obituary [Harold Arthur Fingland], Winnipeg Free Press, 11 August 1986, page 33.

Obituary [Ruth Isabel Fingland], Winnipeg Free Press, 21 July 1993, page 22.

Winnipeg Building Index

Obituaries and burial transcriptions, Manitoba Genealogical Society.

We thank Nathan Kramer and Jordan Makichuk for providing additional information used here.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 5 September 2024

Memorable Manitobans

Memorable Manitobans

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